Method for efficient signaling of virtual boundary for loop filtering control

ABSTRACT

A method, computer program, and/or computer system is provided for coding a video sequence. Video data containing one or more faces may be received. One or more virtual boundaries between the one or more faces of the received video data may be selected. In-loop filtering may be disabled between the one or more selected virtual boundaries from among the virtual boundaries, based on the selected boundaries being discontinuous in a three-dimensional geometry.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/865,944 filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office(filed Jun. 24, 2019), which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates generally to field of computing, and moreparticularly to video encoding.

ITU-T VCEG (Q6/16) and ISO/IEC MPEG (JTC 1/SC 29/WG 11) published theH.265/HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) standard in 2013 (version 1),2014 (version 2), 2015 (version 3), and 2016 (version 4). Since thenthey have been studying the potential need for standardization of futurevideo coding technology with a compression capability that significantlyexceeds that of the HEVC standard (including its extensions). In October2017, they issued the Joint Call for Proposals on Video Compression withCapability beyond HEVC (CfP). By Feb. 15, 2018, a total of 22 CfPresponses on standard dynamic range (SDR), 12 CfP responses on highdynamic range (HDR), and 12 CfP responses on 360 video categories weresubmitted, respectively. In April 2018, all received CfP responses wereevaluated in the 122 MPEG/10th JVET (Joint Video Exploration Team—JointVideo Expert Team) meeting. With careful evaluation, JVET formallylaunched the standardization of next-generation video coding beyondHEVC, i.e., the so-called Versatile Video Coding (VVC). Meanwhile, theAudio Video coding Standard (AVS) of China is also in progress.

SUMMARY

Embodiments relate to a method, system, and computer readable medium forcoding a video sequence. According to one aspect, a method for coding avideo sequence is provided. The method may include receiving video datacontaining one or more faces. One or more virtual boundaries between theone or more faces of the received video data may be selected. In-loopfiltering may be disabled between one or more selected boundaries fromamong the virtual boundaries.

According to another aspect, a computer system for coding a videosequence is provided. The computer system may include one or moreprocessors, one or more computer-readable memories, one or morecomputer-readable tangible storage devices, and program instructionsstored on at least one of the one or more storage devices for executionby at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of theone or more memories, whereby the computer system is capable ofperforming a method. The method may include receiving video datacontaining one or more faces. One or more virtual boundaries between theone or more faces of the received video data may be determined. In-loopfiltering may be disabled between one or more selected boundaries fromamong the virtual boundaries.

According to yet another aspect, a computer readable medium for coding avideo sequence is provided. The computer readable medium may include oneor more computer-readable storage devices and program instructionsstored on at least one of the one or more tangible storage devices, theprogram instructions executable by a processor. The program instructionsare executable by a processor for performing a method that mayaccordingly include receiving video data containing one or more faces.One or more virtual boundaries between the one or more faces of thereceived video data may be determined. In-loop filtering may be disabledbetween one or more selected boundaries from among the virtualboundaries.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects, features and advantages will become apparentfrom the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments,which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings. Thevarious features of the drawings are not to scale as the illustrationsare for clarity in facilitating the understanding of one skilled in theart in conjunction with the detailed description. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 illustrates a networked computer environment according to atleast one embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a set of exemplary syntax elements according to at least oneembodiment;

FIG. 3 is an operational flowchart illustrating the steps carried out bya program for coding a video sequence with virtual boundary filterdisabling, according to at least one embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of internal and external components ofcomputers and servers depicted in FIG. 1 according to at least oneembodiment;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an illustrative cloud computing environmentincluding the computer system depicted in FIG. 1, according to at leastone embodiment; and

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of functional layers of the illustrative cloudcomputing environment of FIG. 5, according to at least one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Detailed embodiments of the claimed structures and methods are disclosedherein; however, it can be understood that the disclosed embodiments aremerely illustrative of the claimed structures and methods that may beembodied in various forms. Those structures and methods may, however, beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the exemplary embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these exemplaryembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete and will fully convey the scope to those skilled in the art. Inthe description, details of well-known features and techniques may beomitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the presented embodiments.

Embodiments relate generally to the field of computing, and moreparticularly to video encoding. The following described exemplaryembodiments provide a system, method and computer program to, amongother things, code a video sequence with virtual boundary filterdisabling. Therefore, some embodiments have the capacity to improve thefield of computing by allowing for a computer to disable in-loopfiltering across discontinuous boundaries is helpful to improve thesubjective visual quality of a video sequence by alleviating undesiredfiltering effect.

As previously described, ITU-T VCEG (Q6/16) and ISO/IEC MPEG (JTC 1/SC29/WG 11) published the H.265/HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding)standard in 2013 (version 1), 2014 (version 2), 2015 (version 3), and2016 (version 4). Since then they have been studying the potential needfor standardization of future video coding technology with a compressioncapability that significantly exceeds that of the HEVC standard(including its extensions). In October 2017, they issued the Joint Callfor Proposals on Video Compression with Capability beyond HEVC (CfP). ByFeb. 15, 2018, a total of 22 CfP responses on standard dynamic range(SDR), 12 CfP responses on high dynamic range (HDR), and 12 CfPresponses on 360 video categories were submitted, respectively. In April2018, all received CfP responses were evaluated in the 122 MPEG/10thJVET (Joint Video Exploration Team—Joint Video Expert Team) meeting.With careful evaluation, JVET formally launched the standardization ofnext-generation video coding beyond HEVC, i.e., the so-called VersatileVideo Coding (VVC). Meanwhile, the Audio Video coding Standard (AVS) ofChina is also in progress.

For projection formats composed of multiple faces, discontinuous edgesmay appear between two or more adjacent faces in the frame packedpicture regardless of the type of compact frame packing arrangementused. For example, in a 3×2 frame packing configuration, the three facesin the upper half may be continuous in the 3D geometry. Similarly, thethree faces in the lower half may also be continuous in the 3D geometry.However, the upper and lower halves of the frame packed picture may bediscontinuous in the 3D geometry with respect to each other. Therefore,if in-loop filtering operations were to be performed across thisdiscontinuity, face seam artifacts may become visible in thereconstructed video. In-loop filtering generally refers to a cascadingprocess of two stages—namely de-blocking filtering and sample adaptiveoffset filtering to remove blocking artifacts causing during videoencoding. It may be advantageous, therefore, to alleviate seam artifactsby selectively disabling in-loop filtering operations acrossdiscontinuous boundaries in the frame-packed picture. This may beachieved by specifying an indication of an i-th vitual boundary'sposition as a difference value between the i-th vitual boundary x-valueand y-value and the (i−1)-th vitual boundary's x-value and y-value.

Aspects are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrationsand/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computerreadable media according to the various embodiments. It will beunderstood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or blockdiagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrationsand/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable programinstructions.

The following described exemplary embodiments provide a system, methodand computer program for video coding by disabling in-loop filterbetween discontinuous face boundaries. Referring now to FIG. 1, afunctional block diagram of a networked computer environmentillustrating a system 100 (hereinafter “system”) for boundary filterdisabling. It should be appreciated that FIG. 1 provides only anillustration of one implementation and does not imply any limitationswith regard to the environments in which different embodiments may beimplemented. Many modifications to the depicted environments may be madebased on design and implementation requirements.

The system 100 may include a computer 102 and a server computer 114. Thecomputer 102 may communicate with the server computer 114 via acommunication network 110 (hereinafter “network”). The computer 102 mayinclude a processor 104 and a software program 108 that is stored on adata storage device 106 and is enabled to interface with a user andcommunicate with the server computer 114. As will be discussed belowwith reference to FIG. 4 the computer 102 may include internalcomponents 800A and external components 900A, respectively, and theserver computer 114 may include internal components 800B and externalcomponents 900B, respectively. The computer 102 may be, for example, amobile device, a telephone, a personal digital assistant, a netbook, alaptop computer, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or any type ofcomputing devices capable of running a program, accessing a network, andaccessing a database.

The server computer 114 may also operate in a cloud computing servicemodel, such as Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service(PaaS), or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), as discussed below withrespect to FIGS. 5 and 6. The server computer 114 may also be located ina cloud computing deployment model, such as a private cloud, communitycloud, public cloud, or hybrid cloud.

The server computer 114, which may be used for coding a video sequencewith virtual boundary filter disabling is enabled to run a BoundaryFilter Disabling Program 116 (hereinafter “program”) that may interactwith a database 112. The Boundary Filter Disabling Program method isexplained in more detail below with respect to FIG. 3. In oneembodiment, the computer 102 may operate as an input device including auser interface while the program 116 may run primarily on servercomputer 114. In an alternative embodiment, the program 116 may runprimarily on one or more computers 102 while the server computer 114 maybe used for processing and storage of data used by the program 116. Itshould be noted that the program 116 may be a standalone program or maybe integrated into a larger boundary filter disabling program.

It should be noted, however, that processing for the program 116 may, insome instances be shared amongst the computers 102 and the servercomputers 114 in any ratio. In another embodiment, the program 116 mayoperate on more than one computer, server computer, or some combinationof computers and server computers, for example, a plurality of computers102 communicating across the network 110 with a single server computer114. In another embodiment, for example, the program 116 may operate ona plurality of server computers 114 communicating across the network 110with a plurality of client computers. Alternatively, the program mayoperate on a network server communicating across the network with aserver and a plurality of client computers.

The network 110 may include wired connections, wireless connections,fiber optic connections, or some combination thereof. In general, thenetwork 110 can be any combination of connections and protocols thatwill support communications between the computer 102 and the servercomputer 114. The network 110 may include various types of networks,such as, for example, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network(WAN) such as the Internet, a telecommunication network such as thePublic Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a wireless network, a publicswitched network, a satellite network, a cellular network (e.g., a fifthgeneration (5G) network, a long-term evolution (LTE) network, a thirdgeneration (3G) network, a code division multiple access (CDMA) network,etc.), a public land mobile network (PLMN), a metropolitan area network(MAN), a private network, an ad hoc network, an intranet, a fiberoptic-based network, or the like, and/or a combination of these or othertypes of networks.

The number and arrangement of devices and networks shown in FIG. 1 areprovided as an example. In practice, there may be additional devicesand/or networks, fewer devices and/or networks, different devices and/ornetworks, or differently arranged devices and/or networks than thoseshown in FIG. 1. Furthermore, two or more devices shown in FIG. 1 may beimplemented within a single device, or a single device shown in FIG. 1may be implemented as multiple, distributed devices. Additionally, oralternatively, a set of devices (e.g., one or more devices) of system100 may perform one or more functions described as being performed byanother set of devices of system 100.

Referring now to FIG. 2, exemplary syntax elements 200 is depictedaccording to one or more embodiments. The syntax elements 200 mayinclude, among other things, parameters that may accordingly include:

pps_num_ver_virtual_boundaries may specify a number ofpps_virtual_boundaries_pos_x[i] syntax elements that may be present inthe picture parameter set (PPS). When pps_num_ver_virtual_boundaries isnot present, the value may be inferred to be equal to 0.

pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_x_delta[i] may be used to compute a value ofPpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i], which may specify a location of an i-thvertical virtual boundary in units of luma samples. The number of bitsused to represent pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_x_delta[i] may beceil(log₂(pic_width_in_luma_samples)−3).pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_x_delta[i] may be in the range of 1 toceil((pic_width_in_luma_samples−PpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i−1])÷8)−2,inclusive. The location of the vertical virtual boundaryPpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i] may be given asPpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i]=pps_virtual_boundariespos_x_delta[i]*8 wheni is zero and asPpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i]=pps_virtual_boundariespos_x_delta[i]*8+PpsVirtualBoundariesPosX[i−1]for all other values. The distance between any two vertical virtualboundaries may be greater than or equal to CtbSizeY luma samples.

pps_num_hor_virtual_boundaries may specify a number ofpps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y[i] syntax elements that may be present inthe PPS. When pps_num_hor_virtual_boundaries is not present, the valuemay be inferred to be equal to 0.

pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y_delta [i] may be used to compute a value ofPpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i], which specifies the location of the i-thhorizontal virtual boundary in units of luma samples. The number of bitsused to represent pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y_delta[i] isceil(Log₂(pic_height_in_luma_samples)−3).pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y_delta[i] may be in the range of 1 toceil((pic_height_in_luma_samples−PpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i−1])÷8)−2,inclusive. The location of the horizontal virtual boundaryPpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i] may be given asPpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i]=pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y_delta[i]*8 wheni is zero and asPpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i]=pps_virtual_boundaries_pos_y_delta[i]*8+PpsVirtualBoundariesPosY[i−1]for all other values. The distance between any two horizontal virtualboundaries may be greater than or equal to CtbSizeY luma samples.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an operational flowchart 300 illustrating thesteps carried out by a program for coding a video sequence with virtualboundary filter disabling is depicted. FIG. 3 may be described with theaid of FIGS. 1 and 2. As previously described, the Boundary FilterDisabling Program 116 (FIG. 1) may quickly and effectively disablein-loop virtual boundary filtering to reduce boundary artifacts in avideo sequence.

At 302, video data containing one or more faces is received. The one ormore faces may correspond to continuous and noncontinuous planes in athree-dimensional video. The faces may be laid out in a frame-packingarrangement. In operation, the Boundary Filter Disabling Program 116(FIG. 1) on the server computer 114 (FIG. 1) may receive video data. Thevideo data may be received from the computer 102 (FIG. 1) over thecommunication network 110 (FIG. 1) or may be retrieved from the database112 (FIG. 1).

At 304, selecting one or more virtual boundaries between the one or morefaces of the received video data. The one or more virtual boundaries mayeach include an x-value and a y-value that may be in increasing order.An i-th virtual boundary may be specified from among the one or morevirtual boundaries as a difference between the x-value and the y-valueof the i-th virtual boundary and the x-value and the y-value of an(i−1)-th virtual boundary. In operation, the Boundary Filter DisablingProgram 116 (FIG. 1) may use one or more syntax elements (FIG. 2) toselect virtual boundaries in the video data.

At 306, in-loop filtering may be disabled between the one or moreselected virtual boundaries from the virtual boundaries. Disabling thein-loop filtering may minimize artifacts present between the virtualboundaries when used in a three-dimensional geometry. In operation, theBoundary Filter Disabling Program 116 (FIG. 1) may use one or moresyntax elements (FIG. 2) to disable in-loop filtering the noncontinuousboundaries in order to minimize artifacts at the virtual boundaries.

It may be appreciated that FIG. 3 provides only an illustration of oneimplementation and does not imply any limitations with regard to howdifferent embodiments may be implemented. Many modifications to thedepicted environments may be made based on design and implementationrequirements.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram 400 of internal and external components ofcomputers depicted in FIG. 1 in accordance with an illustrativeembodiment. It should be appreciated that FIG. 4 provides only anillustration of one implementation and does not imply any limitationswith regard to the environments in which different embodiments may beimplemented. Many modifications to the depicted environments may be madebased on design and implementation requirements.

Computer 102 (FIG. 1) and server computer 114 (FIG. 1) may includerespective sets of internal components 800A,B and external components900A,B illustrated in FIG. 4. Each of the sets of internal components800 include one or more processors 820, one or more computer-readableRAMs 822 and one or more computer-readable ROMs 824 on one or more buses826, one or more operating systems 828, and one or morecomputer-readable tangible storage devices 830.

Processor 820 is implemented in hardware, firmware, or a combination ofhardware and software. Processor 820 is a central processing unit (CPU),a graphics processing unit (GPU), an accelerated processing unit (APU),a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integratedcircuit (ASIC), or another type of processing component. In someimplementations, processor 820 includes one or more processors capableof being programmed to perform a function. Bus 826 includes a componentthat permits communication among the internal components 800A,B.

The one or more operating systems 828, the software program 108 (FIG. 1)and the Boundary Filter Disabling Program 116 (FIG. 1) on servercomputer 114 (FIG. 1) are stored on one or more of the respectivecomputer-readable tangible storage devices 830 for execution by one ormore of the respective processors 820 via one or more of the respectiveRAMs 822 (which typically include cache memory). In the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 4, each of the computer-readable tangible storagedevices 830 is a magnetic disk storage device of an internal hard drive.Alternatively, each of the computer-readable tangible storage devices830 is a semiconductor storage device such as ROM 824, EPROM, flashmemory, an optical disk, a magneto-optic disk, a solid state disk, acompact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a floppy disk, acartridge, a magnetic tape, and/or another type of non-transitorycomputer-readable tangible storage device that can store a computerprogram and digital information.

Each set of internal components 800A,B also includes a R/W drive orinterface 832 to read from and write to one or more portablecomputer-readable tangible storage devices 936 such as a CD-ROM, DVD,memory stick, magnetic tape, magnetic disk, optical disk orsemiconductor storage device. A software program, such as the softwareprogram 108 (FIG. 1) and the Boundary Filter Disabling Program 116(FIG. 1) can be stored on one or more of the respective portablecomputer-readable tangible storage devices 936, read via the respectiveR/W drive or interface 832 and loaded into the respective hard drive830.

Each set of internal components 800A,B also includes network adapters orinterfaces 836 such as a TCP/IP adapter cards; wireless Wi-Fi interfacecards; or 3G, 4G, or 5G wireless interface cards or other wired orwireless communication links. The software program 108 (FIG. 1) and theBoundary Filter Disabling Program 116 (FIG. 1) on the server computer114 (FIG. 1) can be downloaded to the computer 102 (FIG. 1) and servercomputer 114 from an external computer via a network (for example, theInternet, a local area network or other, wide area network) andrespective network adapters or interfaces 836. From the network adaptersor interfaces 836, the software program 108 and the Boundary FilterDisabling Program 116 on the server computer 114 are loaded into therespective hard drive 830. The network may comprise copper wires,optical fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches,gateway computers and/or edge servers.

Each of the sets of external components 900A,B can include a computerdisplay monitor 920, a keyboard 930, and a computer mouse 934. Externalcomponents 900A,B can also include touch screens, virtual keyboards,touch pads, pointing devices, and other human interface devices. Each ofthe sets of internal components 800A,B also includes device drivers 840to interface to computer display monitor 920, keyboard 930 and computermouse 934. The device drivers 840, R/W drive or interface 832 andnetwork adapter or interface 836 comprise hardware and software (storedin storage device 830 and/or ROM 824).

It is understood in advance that although this disclosure includes adetailed description on cloud computing, implementation of the teachingsrecited herein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,some embodiments are capable of being implemented in conjunction withany other type of computing environment now known or later developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g. networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure comprising anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring to FIG. 5, illustrative cloud computing environment 500 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 500 comprises one ormore cloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C, .. . automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Cloud computingnodes 10 may communicate with one another. They may be grouped (notshown) physically or virtually, in one or more networks, such asPrivate, Community, Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove,or a combination thereof. This allows cloud computing environment 500 tooffer infrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which acloud consumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 5 are intended to be illustrative only and that cloud computingnodes 10 and cloud computing environment 500 can communicate with anytype of computerized device over any type of network and/or networkaddressable connection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring to FIG. 6, a set of functional abstraction layers 600 providedby cloud computing environment 500 (FIG. 5) is shown. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 6 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments are notlimited thereto. As depicted, the following layers and correspondingfunctions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In some embodiments, software componentsinclude network application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may comprise applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and Boundary Filter Disabling 96. BoundaryFilter Disabling 96 may code a video sequence with virtual boundaryfilter disabling.

Some embodiments may relate to a system, a method, and/or a computerreadable medium at any possible technical detail level of integration.The computer readable medium may include a computer-readablenon-transitory storage medium (or media) having computer readableprogram instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry outoperations.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program code/instructions for carrying out operationsmay be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (ISA)instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions,microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, configuration datafor integrated circuitry, or either source code or object code writtenin any combination of one or more programming languages, including anobject oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++, or thelike, and procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programminglanguage or similar programming languages. The computer readable programinstructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on theuser's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user'scomputer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remotecomputer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may beconnected to the user's computer through any type of network, includinga local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or theconnection may be made to an external computer (for example, through theInternet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments,electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logiccircuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logicarrays (PLA) may execute the computer readable program instructions byutilizing state information of the computer readable programinstructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order toperform aspects or operations.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer readable media according to variousembodiments. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or blockdiagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions,which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing thespecified logical function(s). The method, computer system, and computerreadable medium may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, differentblocks, or differently arranged blocks than those depicted in theFigures. In some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblocks may occur out of the order noted in the Figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed concurrently orsubstantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed inthe reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It willalso be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/orflowchart illustration, can be implemented by special purposehardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts orcarry out combinations of special purpose hardware and computerinstructions.

It will be apparent that systems and/or methods, described herein, maybe implemented in different forms of hardware, firmware, or acombination of hardware and software. The actual specialized controlhardware or software code used to implement these systems and/or methodsis not limiting of the implementations. Thus, the operation and behaviorof the systems and/or methods were described herein without reference tospecific software code—it being understood that software and hardwaremay be designed to implement the systems and/or methods based on thedescription herein.

No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed ascritical or essential unless explicitly described as such. Also, as usedherein, the articles “a” and “an” are intended to include one or moreitems, and may be used interchangeably with “one or more.” Furthermore,as used herein, the term “set” is intended to include one or more items(e.g., related items, unrelated items, a combination of related andunrelated items, etc.), and may be used interchangeably with “one ormore.” Where only one item is intended, the term “one” or similarlanguage is used. Also, as used herein, the terms “has,” “have,”“having,” or the like are intended to be open-ended terms. Further, thephrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on”unless explicitly stated otherwise.

The descriptions of the various aspects and embodiments have beenpresented for purposes of illustration, but are not intended to beexhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Even thoughcombinations of features are recited in the claims and/or disclosed inthe specification, these combinations are not intended to limit thedisclosure of possible implementations. In fact, many of these featuresmay be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and/ordisclosed in the specification. Although each dependent claim listedbelow may directly depend on only one claim, the disclosure of possibleimplementations includes each dependent claim in combination with everyother claim in the claim set. Many modifications and variations will beapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing fromthe scope of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein waschosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practicalapplication or technical improvement over technologies found in themarketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art tounderstand the embodiments disclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of coding a video sequence, executableby a processor, comprising: receiving video data containing one or morefaces; selecting one or more virtual boundaries between the one or morefaces of the received video data; disabling in-loop filtering betweenthe one or more selected virtual boundaries from the virtual boundaries.2. The method of claim 1, wherein the in-loop filter is disabled basedon the selected boundaries being discontinuous in a three-dimensionalgeometry.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the one or morevirtual boundaries includes an x-value and a y-value.
 4. The method ofclaim 3, wherein each of the x-values and the y-values associated witheach of the virtual boundaries are in ascending order.
 5. The method ofclaim 3, wherein an i-th virtual boundary is specified from among theone or more virtual boundaries as a difference between the x-value andthe y-value of the i-th virtual boundary and the x-value and the y-valueof an (i−1)-th virtual boundary.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein alocation of the a virtual boundary from among the one or more virtualboundaries is specified by one or more units of luma samples.
 7. Themethod of claim 6, wherein the distance between two virtual boundariesis a number of luma samples that is greater than or equal to a size of acoding tree unit associated with the video sequence.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the disabling the in-loop filtering minimizes one ormore seam artifacts between the virtual boundaries.
 9. A computer systemfor coding a video sequence, the computer system comprising: one or morecomputer-readable non-transitory storage media configured to storecomputer program code; and one or more computer processors configured toaccess said computer program code and operate as instructed by saidcomputer program code, said computer program code including: receivingcode configured to cause the one or more processors to receive videodata containing one or more faces; selecting code configured to causethe one or more processors to select one or more virtual boundariesbetween the one or more faces of the received video data; disabling codeconfigured to cause the one or more processors to disable in-loopfiltering between the one or more selected virtual boundaries from thevirtual boundaries.
 10. The computer system of claim 9, wherein thein-loop filter is disabled based on the selected boundaries beingdiscontinuous in a three-dimensional geometry.
 11. The computer systemof claim 9, wherein each of the one or more virtual boundaries includesan x-value and a y-value.
 12. The computer system of claim 11, whereineach of the x-values and the y-values associated with each of thevirtual boundaries are in ascending order.
 13. The computer system ofclaim 11, wherein an i-th virtual boundary is specified from among theone or more virtual boundaries as a difference between the x-value andthe y-value of the i-th virtual boundary and the x-value and the y-valueof an (i−1)-th virtual boundary.
 14. The computer system of claim 9,wherein a location of the a virtual boundary from among the one or morevirtual boundaries is specified by one or more units of luma samples.15. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the distance between twovirtual boundaries is a number of luma samples that is greater than orequal to a size of a coding tree unit associated with the videosequence.
 16. The computer system of claim 9, wherein the disabling thein-loop filtering minimizes one or more seam artifacts between thevirtual boundaries.
 17. A non-transitory computer readable medium havingstored thereon a computer program for coding a video sequence, thecomputer program configured to cause one or more computer processors to:receive video data containing one or more faces; select one or morevirtual boundaries between the one or more faces of the received videodata; disable in-loop filtering between the one or more selected virtualboundaries from the virtual boundaries.
 18. The computer readable mediumof claim 17, wherein the in-loop filter is disabled based on theselected boundaries being discontinuous in a three-dimensional geometry.19. The computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein each of the one ormore virtual boundaries includes an x-value and a y-value.
 20. Thecomputer readable medium of claim 19, wherein an i-th virtual boundaryis specified from among the one or more virtual boundaries as adifference between the x-value and the y-value of the i-th virtualboundary and the x-value and the y-value of an (i−1)-th virtualboundary.